Rail can and does serve suburbs effectively. This is possible because while some job growth is occurring in the suburbs, it’s not spread out evenly across the map. Instead, this suburban growth is concentrated in specific areas in corridors. In Hillsborough, for example, most growth is along Bruce B. Downs in New Tampa or along SR 60 in Brandon (which is why lines are planned for both of these areas). These high growth corridors can be served effectively by rail.
Portland, Oregon, offers an example. Instead of building a planned freeway to serve the growth in the suburban corridor to the west of the city, it built Westside MAX, an extension of the Light Rail System. Passenger Transport reported on September 25, 2000, Westside MAX's two-year anniversary, that daily ridership on Westside MAX exceeded the 25,200 rides estimated for 2005 after only 17 months of operation and reached 28,200 weekday rides a few months later.
A single Light Rail line can only serve a limited area, but a complete system like the one planned for Hillsborough County that connects major residential areas, including the suburbs, to major employment centers can and will work effectively.
Check the facts:
Weyrich and Lind, Twelve Anti-Transit Myths: A Conservative Critique The Free Congress Foundation, 2001
So far so good, two more to go!
Heroically yours,
Mobility Mike and Commuter Carly
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